Public Republic

director & motion designer: manu meyre, painter: vassily kandinsky, composition VIII (1923), music band: the kandinsky effect, girl/boy song (edit)

Warren, what does music mean to you/ the band?

For me personally, music has always been a creative outlet. For the band I think it’s just a great excuse to hang out with friends and to create.

Tell us something about The Kandinsky Effect? What does it mean? How was the band founded?

The band started out as the Warren Walker Trio in January 2007. That was the first time the three of us played together and it really seemed to work well. After a few months we were playing quite regularly together and everyone began writing music for the band – and we started to have a real group sound. At that moment we all knew we couldn’t be WWT any longer, so originally we changed the band name just to Kandinsky. Then in the summer of 2007 we finally changed the band name to the Kandinsky Effect, since there was already a chamber ensemble named Kandinsky Trio.

The Kandinsky Effect, Photo: Ian Holmes

You work and live in Paris. Why did you decide to move there?

I never really made the decision. I came here initially in 2004 to see some friends and I immediately began playing with other musicians, going to jam sessions…I started to really love the city in general and I just never left. 🙂

How has the environment affected your personality and your music?

Well the city environment here is wonderful. Paris is really a city, where there is something beautiful to be found around every corner, and it’s very inspiring. In terms of music, it’s a very international city and there are many opportunities to play with musicians from all around the world with so many different musical backgrounds, that you are constantly discovering new music from their cultures or a different approach to songs that we all know.

Is 2011 going to be your first time at the International Jazz Festival Bansko?

Yes, this will be my first time at the Bansko Jazz Festival. The band and I are very excited to come out!

What do you know about Bulgaria? And about Bansko Jazz?

Well it will be the first time for all of us in Bulgaria and we are looking forward to discovering the country and its culture. I do know a bit about Bansko Jazz. I have a few friends that were at the festival last year and had such a great time. They couldn’t find enough words to describe the beauty of the area, the great music and the energy of the festival.

For you, what was the most surprising experience working with other musicians?

With The Kandinsky Effect every time we play together it’s a surprise! We have so much fun playing together that each time we play the music is different. We record every show we play and we always try to listen back to it together. It’s exciting to hear the musical directions we take as an ensemble and how each and every note that we play has some effect on someone else in the band.

The Kandinsky Effect, Photo: Ian Holmes

What is the source of your inspiration?

To put it in one word I would have to say “life”.

What are you dreaming about?

Right now that it’s still fairly cold in Paris I would say the beach. 🙂 In terms of music I think my dream is just to continue travelling and sharing our music on stages around the world.

What is the greatest satisfaction for you as an artist and your biggest challenge?

Just getting to share this music with other people is very satisfying, and so is the search for this music. The search may not only be very satisfying, but it’s also the biggest challenge. Trying to keep fresh and constantly searching for your own voice on your instrument and in our work as composers is always a challenge.

Would you please tell us something about your current and future projects?

Well I have two other projects that I recently just started: the first is a quartet project called Dirty Elegance featuring Federico Casagrande on the guitar, Jiri Slavik on the upright bass, and Nicolas Charlier on the drums. This group is a completely free ensemble. There are no written charts or pre-rehearsed material. We show up and we play and we strive for spontaneous composition on the stage (not necessarily saying this happens every time..:).

The second is a duo project called DUPLEX. It is a guitar and saxophone duo project featuring many famous rock and electronic tunes we have rearranged for saxophone and guitar. This group comprises of myself and Alex Stuart on the guitar.

Where can your albums be bought from?

Our albums can be found on itunes, amazon, cdbaby, and all other major online retailers.

Tour and concert dates (extract):

April 29th – Duc des Lombards, Paris
May 5th – UK Tour including dates at Charlie Wrightsin, London
May 7th – Matt and Phred’s, Manchester
July – Musicamdo Jazz Festival, Italy
October – an extensive 20 concert tour on the West coast of the US including a performance at the Angel City Jazz Festival in Los Angeles.

www.kandinskyeffect.tk
www.myspace.com/thekandinskyeffect
www.myspace.com/warrenwalker

The Kandisky Effect are
Warren Walker – Saxophone/Effects
Gael Petrina – Bass/Effects
Thibault Perriard – Drums.

The Kandinsky Effect is a modern jazz ensemble; both powerful and sensitive within their own unique sound. They are constantly looking for new ways to improvise within the jazz idiom. The Kandinsky Effect can be found playing around the borders of jazz, rock, electronic, hip-hop, and experimental sounds, searching for freedom of expression. Tenor saxophone, double bass and drums play subtly with sounds, colors, rhythms and forms to create a rich and original musical experience.